National Briefing | Washington: Air Travelers Will Have To Take Off Jackets

Published: September 18, 2004

Starting next week, all airline passengers must take off their jackets before passing through metal detectors and more will be subjected to pat-down searches and checks for explosives, the Transportation Security Administration said. Checked baggage must pass through machines that can detect various kinds of explosives. But neither the walk-through metal detectors nor the X-ray machines for carry-on bags can sense plastic explosives. So now, every passenger selected for secondary screening will have carry-on items checked by explosives trace detectors.